MLB: Phillies seal deal for Cuban pitcher Gonzalez

CHICAGO — When pitcher Miguel Gonzalez left his native Cuba earlier this year and became eligible to sign with a major-league team in June, Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. asked a friend and former Phils reliever for his opinion on his fellow ex-pat.

“One of the people who talked to him and has done some mentoring with him is Jose Contreras,” Amaro said Friday after the Phillies finally reached a formal agreement with Gonzalez on a contract. “I think I have a really good relationship with Jose, and after getting an understanding about the player from him and the background we’ve done on him, he’s a good kid.”

The Phillies hope that Gonzalez will be a good pitcher as well, since they expect the right-hander could be in their starting rotation at the start of next season.

The major-league contract guarantees the right-hander three years and $12 million in 2014-16, although there are significant bonuses for the 26-year-old if he remains healthy and in the majors for the duration of those three seasons. There also is a fourth-year club option that can be vested.

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The guaranteed money in this contract is far less than the six years and $50 million the Phillies allegedly put on the table before a closer look at Gonzalez’s medical record was doable.

That closer look revealed surgery for bone spurs in his elbow a few years ago, as well as some other concerns that required more research and a revised agreement.

“We checked his elbow and shoulder obviously and tried to make sure about them,” Amaro said. “Any time you sign a free agent there are risks, and we had our doctors take a look at it, and we felt comfortable enough to move forward on it.”

Gonzalez was clocked at 93 to 97 mph with his fastball during an exhibition start in Mexico in late June. He had gone nearly two years without competing, as Cuban baseball officials banned him from play in 2011 for a failed attempt to seek asylum.

Gonzalez will report to Clearwater, Fla., in the coming days and prepare to take part in the Florida Instructional League this fall. Amaro said there were no plans to pitch him in the Caribbean winter leagues prior to spring training, but that could change.

The more optimistic scouting reports say Gonzalez could be a step below a staff ace in the majors, and Amaro hopes that’s the case with Roy Halladay’s uncertain future, John Lannan’s failure to stay healthy and effective this season, and Kyle Kendrick becoming a free agent after 2014.

“We certainly will find out (his potential) once he starts throwing for us and starts working competitivel,” Amaro said. “Hopefully we can slide him into our rotation.

“He has great stuff. How it translates and how effectively he can be, we’ll see.

“More than anything else, it’s about trying different ways to find talent. There’s risk everywhere, and there will be risk with him, too. But from what we’ve seen from this guy, we think he has a chance to be pretty special.”